Chapter 12

True Motive

I now understood Alice's initial reaction to Elizabeth's arrival. Elizabeth seemed to be truly a good person, or should I say, a good vampire. She was almost like a mixture between Esme and Renee; motherly, playful, adventurous…

Charlie had explained that right before Edward and I got there, they had been talking about Renesmee. It seemed that Charlie and Elizabeth had time to discuss a number of things. It was unusual to see Charlie sharing this much about himself; he usually just kept to himself, much like me.

Elizabeth seemed delightful to be around, but she was still a part of the Volturi's coven and that still concerned me. It wasn't helping that Edward was still unable to read anyone's minds, so we couldn't be sure of her true intentions; although, I had the feeling that her actions were sincere.

Edward's cell phone started to ring; it was Carlisle.

"Yes Carlisle, we found Charlie." Edward paused for a few seconds. "We are by the lake… Should we wait here or head back to the house?"

Edward was about to tell Carlisle that Elizabeth was with us, but hesitated. Charlie then asked for the phone so that he could have a word with Carlisle.

"Dr. Carlisle." Sometimes Charlie seemed to forget that we were family, referring to Carlisle as "doctor". Listening to Charlie talking to Carlisle, made me realize how much Charlie already knew about Elizabeth. "I have someone here who needs to speak with you about the Volturi. It is important. She can't risk to be found talking to us before they get here, so we are heading back to the house." We assumed that Carlisle agreed. "We will see you in a few minutes."

I turned to Charlie, not sure if I should say anything in front of Elizabeth. She seemed to get the hint that I wanted to talk to Charlie in private, as she distanced herself for a few minutes.

I whispered, trying to keep her from hearing me. "Dad, it will help to know when exactly the rest of them will be back, if you leave Alice's visions alone." Charlie laughed. "I guess I forgot." He said sarcastically. I thought that asking to leave Edward's ability alone was a little too much, so I moved on, leading them back to the house.

We were trying to hurry, so there was not much discussion on the way. We got back to the house in a matter of minutes. Alice seemed to already fill in everyone that the visitor was Elizabeth; although, they had already assumed that.

Carlisle and Esme both welcomed Elizabeth.

I approached Alice to see if she had any new visions, and she whispered saying they were still very confusing.

"There is not much time." Alice said, "Aro and Demetri will be here in an hour."

Elizabeth had explained that Demetri thought she was hunting, so she would need to meet them back by the lake.

Carlisle noticed that she only mentioned Demetri's name. "Does Aro know where you are?"

"He does actually. He asked me to come. We don't have much time, so I will try and explain as much as I can."

We were all intrigued, wondering what Aro was up to this time.

"Aro is very concerned about how things are going back in Italy. You probably have not heard any rumors, because they are doing a great job in hiding what is happening, but truth is, the Volturi lost a lot of credibility over the past few years, and with such credibility loss, they also lost many talents. Besides Demetri, the only ones that have been with the Volturi brothers for over 3 years are their mates, as well as Jane and her brother." I shivered at the thought of seeing Jane again. Gladly no one noticed my reaction; they were all attentive to what Elizabeth was saying. No one interrupted her with questions; we all just listened, quietly.

"Then, give or take, two years ago, the Volturi brothers found Scarlett. That seemed to be a blessing, a great addition to a new collection of powers; she was able to predict what someone's power was. They shortly found out that, she could also tell what human's powers would be once they were turned, and then things got worse. Aro's brothers, against his will, used her to pick out humans with potential to do great things, only they were newborns with knowledge of their power, but no control."

That was the first time I had ever seen Carlisle in shock. "How much of damage are we talking about?"

"They had to destroy most of the newborns once they realized the lack of control, but that has not stopped them. Aro can't stop his brothers on his own. He needs help. Scarlett knows what Charlie's power is and Aro's brothers want Charlie to use his ability and help to control the newborns. Aro told his brothers he would come and bring Charlie, but that was just an excuse to be able to ask for your help in dealing with his brothers; however, his brothers did send Demetri to spy on us, so they must believe there is something else happening."

"And how do you suppose that we could help?" Carlisle asked.

"Aro was hoping that Charlie could disable Scarlett's ability, as well as his brothers. Their experiments are getting out of hand and there is much risk of exposure."

I could hardly process everything that she was saying and I felt the need to protect Charlie, I did not want him involved. "But, we don't know the exact capabilities of his power. I don't even think it would work in such a distance. Besides, what if they come after him?"

Elizabeth listened to all of my concerns, and in a calm and understanding voice said that Charlie's job as a human; as a protector had prepared him for much greatness. She assured us that he would be able to protect our kind, as well as humans, just by eliminating abilities that were deemed dangerous for both humans and vampires. She and Aro were ready to join us in case we needed any kind of protection.

I gazed at Alice to notice she was calm and smiling, as if her confused visions were now explained. Aro was saying one thing to his brother, while his intentions were the opposite.

I was now more relaxed, knowing the true reason for their visit. "So what do we do now? What about Demetri?"

Elizabeth seemed to have everything planned out. "I will meet them and will follow them here as if nothing happened. Aro will come and offer a place for Charlie with the Volturi. All he has to do is hesitate first and then eventually say that he agrees. Aro will take Demetri home with him, and will order me to stay and leave with Charlie in a few days. Once they are gone, Charlie can get to work."